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ACCREDITATION

ACCREDITATION STATUS
Santa Barbara City College is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, 10 Commercial Blvd., Suite 204, Novato, CA 94949 (415) 506-0234 an institutional accrediting body recognized by the Commission on Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation and the U.S. Department of Education. In 2010, the ACCJC reaffirmed the College's accreditation. In 2012, the Commission placed the college on warning status for governance related issues. This action is only related to this area of performance and not to the college's exemplary academic and student support programs. The college retains its accreditation status during this period.

ACCREDITATION OF SBCC
Every six years we undergo re-affirmation of our accreditation by the Accrediting Commission of Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC), a branch of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Accreditation is a quality assurance process that gives us the opportunity to engage in institution-wide dialogue and self-evaluation activities in order to gain a comprehensive perspective of our college. The scope of accreditation is to promote quality and improvement. Being an accredited college is of critical importance. It is this status that allows us to provide federal financial aid to our students, receive federal funding, have the degrees that we grant to our students recognized as coming from an accredited institution and be able to articulate our courses with other colleges and universities. In 2010, the ACCJC reaffirmed Santa Barbara City College's accreditation.

UPDATE IN STATUS 2012
The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) notified Santa Barbara City College that it has been placed on warning status as a result of a complaint filed on June 28, 2011 regarding allegations that the SBCC Board of Trustees was out of compliance with a number of accreditation standards which deal with the role and performance of the institution’s governing board in 2010-2011. After the complaint was filed, ACCJC conducted an investigation including a site team visit on November 9-10, 2011 at the college.

The March 26, 2012 notification from the ACCJC, which states that the “accredited status of the institution continues during the warning period”, cites deficiencies identified in a January 31, 2012 letter that was previously made public.

The letter states that as a result of the imposition of the warning, SBCC is required to submit a special report by March 15, 2013 which demonstrates that the college has resolved the noted deficiencies, corrected any Standards violations and addressed three specific commission recommendations. This report will be followed by a visit of ACCJC representatives.